To Find a Duchess Read online

  To Find a Duchess

  by Lisa M. Prysock

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means- electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording or any other-- except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the author.

  Copyright 2015 by Lisa M. Prysock

  All rights reserved.

  Cover Design by Lisa M. Prysock; front cover image contributed by [Denis Tekekov] © 123RF.com

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to events or locales, is entirely coincidental.

  Unless paraphrased, otherwise noted or indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

  Copyright 2015 Lisa M. Prysock

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN:

  ISBN 9781310534768 (Smashwords)

  To Find a Duchess

  By Lisa M. Prysock

  Smashwords Edition

  © 2015 Lisa M. Prysock

  Smashwords Edition, License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com or your favorite retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Acknowledgments

  This book is dedicated to my loving and supportive husband, Robert, the man that gave me wings; and our five wonderful children, Nicholas, Aaron and Courtney, (& my two stepdaughters) Adrienne and Amanda-- for allowing me endless hours of research, writing and editing; for helping Mom around the house; for inspiring and encouraging me; for being each of you, uniquely you; and for allowing me to pursue the dream of writing. Thank you for the smiles and laughter ... and for teaching me God is really good, all the time! Life is wonderful!

  Table of Contents -- “To Find a Duchess”

  1. Stipulations & Matters of Dukes

  2. The Baffled Butler

  3. Two Prospective Brides

  4. Leah or Alexandra

  5. William Makes His Choice

  6. The Hon. Alexandra Benningham Interviews “Mr. William Harcourt”

  7. No Wedding Bells

  8. The More Kissing Chapter That Had None

  9. The One With the Chickens & Kittens

  10. Lost... A Letter & Three Ladies

  11. A Love More Than the Glory of Blenheim

  12. What She Thought & What He Thought

  13. About Benjamin Trimmel

  14. An Unexpected Visitor

  15. William, Like the Conqueror & Alexandra, Like Ruth

  16. Going the Distance

  17. The Earl & the Countess Drop By

  18. Things Put Off

  Glossary

  About the Author

  Acknowledgments

  Copyright

  To Find a Duchess

  By Lisa Prysock

  Chapter 1. Stipulations & Matters of Dukes

  Over his dead body would he marry Lady Catherine Duncan! His Grace, The Duke of Gloucester, Lord William Braden Hartford the Fifth, refused to consider the unthinkable. Catherine was deplorable... and besides that, completely wrong for him. She might have fooled his aunt and uncle, but her true character hadn't fooled him. His search for a suitable bride seemed futile. He was surprised Aunt Regina hadn't heard any gossip yet about Lady Catherine in the rumor mill. Where could he find a bride with attributes such as loyalty, trustworthiness and integrity? Catherine seemed to be like most of the others he'd met over the years. Her interest in him didn't go any further than his title and inheritance. These were his thoughts that summer morning as he stormed out of the heavy front doors belonging to Ivy Clifton Hall.

  Just being in the same room with her tried him of all his patience, testing his usually impeccable manners and even tempered, amiable nature. He had a strong, quiet but pensive personality. He had a commanding demeanor and the confidence of a man twice his age. He seldom spoke out of turn. When he did, he reserved words for what was truly important. She, on the other hand, usually chattered endlessly, at times annoyingly. He spent a great deal of time sacrificing for others. She was spoilt and demanding, the only daughter of her Scottish descended parents.

  She lacked the most desirable qualities he sought after... despite her beautiful strawberry blond locks. Her blue eyes were heavenly when she batted her eyelashes at him, but aside from looks, he had no attraction to her whatsoever... even though his aunt and uncle had such high hopes regarding a match between them. He didn't care Aunt Regina had pronounced the girl as “well bred” or “well connected among the ton” or one iota about her “generous dowry”... or any of those things the peerage and his family seemed to care about... and he certainly wasn't about to spend the rest of his life with someone he didn't love.

  Lady Catherine looked lovely in a new frock or evening gown. She seemed to have one in every color, each with matching hats and silk slippers. She might look pretty on his arm but he knew he could never trust her with his heart. Just weeks before the Season had commenced in London, he'd stumbled upon her in one of the drawing rooms at Ivy Clifton Hall in what appeared to be an attempt to seduce a wealthy Earl. Finley was a rogue and although secretly betrothed to the daughter of a Marquess, easily distracted by Catherine. She might not have fallen for his charms had she known his situation-- but William couldn't be sure.

  His aunt had invited the Duncans to visit them in the countryside before the social whirl would begin. There had been nothing but talk of fashions and society, Catherine's Scotch-Welsh heritage and more fashions, for days. He had tried to avoid her parents like the plague. At every turn he'd found himself face to face with one of the Duncan clan or that conniving Earl, Finley, who did all he could to cozy up to Lady Catherine --while admitting to William that he had no real romantic interest in the girl. He remembered the relief he'd felt when he'd unexpectedly been called upon to intervene in a matter of dispute between tenants on one of the properties southeast of London. His escape had been a temporal blessing, but before long, he had to return to London and face the Season.

  The incident with Finley had been followed closely by another one of those abominable, crowded balls on a Wednesday evening at Almack's; this time, confirming his suspicions that she could not be trusted. How the son of a little known country squire had obtained entrance to Almack's, he remained uncertain; but he was becoming even more uncertain of how Lady Catherine Duncan had accomplished the same. He'd rather not remember what he saw when he'd stumbled on the pair in a private corner away from prying eyes. In any case, she clearly wasn't the loyal type, let alone ready to settle down into marriage. And he....he scolded himself... had a knack for escaping crowded dances and social gatherings only to find her in compromising situations... or had it just been the Lord letting him know this woman was definitely not for him? The footsteps of a good man are ordered of the Lord.... was the Psalm that came to His mind.

  Aunt Regina had gotten one thing right, Catherine was indeed “well connected” and seemed to be enjoying making fools of men. She hadn't attempted to brush off these advances and she'd been more than blatantly encouraging the Earl of Finley. He found it hard to believe she was the innocent maiden everyone seemed to think she was. Now that the Season was nearly over and summer holidays well underway, unless his aunt and uncle vacationed in Bath, they had little chance of discovering the trut
h on their own. Everyone was flocking to Bath, but he'd had his fill of social events while in London and the Gloucester family had retreated to Ivy Clifton Hall.

  He was more than certain Aunt Regina had overestimated Lady Catherine Duncan's character but he wasn't about to ruin the girl's reputation by disclosing what he'd witnessed. She would probably be able to destroy her own reputation without any help at all from his corner. He had been spared a marriage of ruin by what he had witnessed and at this point, found himself considering marriage only if it wasn't going to be with her!

  He'd rather marry a perfect stranger than marry Catherine, or any other number of the long line of allegedly virginal damsels his guardians had tried to get him to warm to. How would he ever trust someone like Catherine? He had so little time left to find a bride; almost no time to establish in his heart and mind a woman who was trustworthy. How had the years slipped by without him finding someone who shared a few common interests or had a similar faith in the good Lord, or someone who enjoyed a quiet life in the country-- away from the craze of the ton?

  He stormed out of Ivy Clifton with the intention of getting as far away as he could manage. He wasn't usually so easily angered, but this time Aunt Regina had pushed him too far in her effort to help him find the next Duchess of Gloucester. Ivy Clifton Hall at Berkeley, where he spent most of his time, would demand a capable and responsible lady to manage the affairs of the household. Aunt Regina wasn't growing any younger. She was eager to take on less of these matters and looked forward to the day when she could pass along this role to his wife, if he would ever settle down with one.

  Clearly, he and his aunt and uncle were not going to see eye-to-eye on the subject of who he was going to marry. His long muscular legs made great strides through the upper great hall, down the grand staircase and out of the large front doors of the estate, causing a few parlor maids to scurry out of his way and the butler, Ormsby, scrambling to open the front doors of the sprawling, ancestral Norman structure. Just having someone open doors for him seemed an irritation that morning. Times like these made him wish the renovations at the Dowager House were complete so he could have some degree of privacy from his well-meaning relations.

  Today Ivy Clifton looked more grand, stately and imposing than ever in the sunshine that cast warm rays across the grounds. He didn't notice the grandness and beauty of it all as much as he felt the weighty burden of managing it all. The morning sunshine seemed to beat on him as it glistened on everything else-- from the forest in the background around two thirds of the immediate acreage, to the endless meadows and dales that gleamed back at him in the foreground. It felt as though his ancestors were laughing at him and their laughter seemed to echo off the great stone walls of his home.

  He didn't notice the blades of grass on the expanse of lawn were still damp from the morning dew as he looked straight ahead toward the stables, allowing his long legs to carry him there without a backwards glance. He looked no one in the eye and his face was flushed so red from anger that no one dared inquire anything of him. His black Hessian style boots housed his muscular, long legs as he stomped loudly across the threshold of the portico and down the steps of the main house, making his way directly toward the stables, crushing the lawn as he went.

  He could still hear the memory of the echo of the door slamming to his aunt's salon on the second floor where the family usually gathered in the evenings. Fortunately, he could not feel her eyes boring through the windows after him as he made his rash exit across the great expanse of lawn. He usually would have done everything in his power not to upset his aunt, but at that particular moment had he been able to see she was wretchedly ringing her hands together and concerned about his abrupt and angry departure, he still wouldn't have been able to bring himself to return to her side to comfort her.

  Regina realized it was too late to make him come back and talk things through. The slammed door had stunned her. William hardly ever lost his temper. He was always the calmer of the two boys. Having heard the firm stomping of his boot heels when he walked down the hall she realized he wasn't ever going to accept Lady Catherine Duncan as a bride. Her matchmaking attempts had failed again, at least where William was concerned.

  She found herself whispering a prayer up to heaven for him to find the right woman. Had he known she felt terrible about their argument he might have turned around and offered her some assurance that he would find a bride and that he would come back to Ivy Clifton renewed and happy, forgiving her for meddling -- but that was all part of the problem. He couldn't reassure anyone that he would find a wife. He had no plan whatsoever for doing so and no idea as to how to go about finding a bride when all of the usual venues had failed. She couldn't bare to see what would become of the relationship between the boys if ... no, she wouldn't even think on it.

  He didn't bother following the wide circular drive or the brown and yellowish-gray cobble stoned path alongside it to the stables. He wanted to take the most direct route possible and didn't care if a few blades of grass stuck to his well-polished boots or if he left a few deeply dug heel ruts in the meticulously maintained lawn. All he knew was that he had to get away from his family ancestral home. He had to go where he could think clearly and sort this out in his head ...and actually feel the air expanding his lungs as he breathed. He didn't usually lose his temper with anyone.

  He prayed a desperate prayer silently as he approached the stable, a string of footmen from the main house rather comically following him at a safe distance, “Dear God, help me contain my temper... help me breathe... help me to find a wife I can trust. Forgive me for slamming that door. You know I've been more than patient about this matter. Show me how to find the right woman...because nothing else has worked and I have not found her. I have not found anyone suitable to become the Duchess over all of this you have placed in my hands. I know it is your will for me to take care of this great responsibility, but I need the right woman beside me. Not just anyone... the right one. You alone know where she is...”

  Ordinarily, William, a handsome Duke and the already wealthy heir to a vast fortune and two of his late father's fourteen properties, and the future heir to twelve other land holdings... got along very well with his aunt and uncle. However, as he had conveyed to Aunt Regina that very morning, he firmly upheld the conviction he would not be baited into a loveless marriage with the wrong creature simply to fulfill the requirements of his long deceased father's will.

  The codicil to the will had become an almost reprehensible document in his mind. It clearly stated he had to be married on or before his twenty-seventh birthday. Furthermore, it stated his wife must be with child or have produced an heir before he could inherit the rest of his father's estate... The properties not entailed to his title and now in the careful managing hands of his aunt and uncle would remain there until these conditions were met by either he or his brother. He had never asked what would happen if both he and Marcus failed to meet the conditions. That wasn't an option either of them could afford to consider.

  Now that he'd turned twenty-six, Regina and James both reminded him frequently that he had a few months at best... to satisfy the will-- or everything else could be granted to his brother (if his younger brother could produce a wife and heir in a timely fashion, before he turned twenty-seven). “Hartford, the last I heard, it takes a good deal of time to woo a woman's heart and it can take many months to produce a child. For some couples, it can take years.” Aunt Regina had tried to sound gentle but she had instead sounded somewhat denigrating. She was desperate however, to point out the truth.

  Lord William Braden Hartford, more commonly referred to as Hartford by those of his social equal, would retain a title and only the two estates attached to his title entail if he failed to find a bride and produce an heir, and very soon. If that happened... if he failed... and he hated to even consider the thought, he wouldn't have nearly the resources he was accustomed to, much less liquidity in his assets and much less financial flexibility. As it stood now
, his uncle used every resource available to help William manage and maintain the larger estates properly and provide for the whole of the family. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he vaguely worried that word might even leak out and cause him to become the subject of much gossip if he failed to achieve his second inheritance. It contained the bulk of the wealth required to maintain the lifestyle to which he and his family were accustomed. He would become the subject of much criticism, maybe even the laughing stock of the House of Lords if he failed, which he didn't intend to do. He was many things-- but he was not a failure and didn't intend to start the habit of becoming one now.